My Other Left Foot
by ssbailey
Summary: When left all alone to raise her son, JJ is more than exhausted. But after a long case in Mississippi she wakes up to find herself in a very interesting position with the man of her dreams who just happens to be her boss....JJ/Hotch
1. Autopilot

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**A/N: Okay so I just read this amazing story called "For Worse & Better" by kdzl and decided to give this great pairing a shot. I have no idea how short or long this story will be, but I hope everyone likes it and I'll try and keep it updated at least once a week. Please review and let me know if you liked it! Thanks for reading!**

**Chapter One**

Jennifer Jareau stirred and stretched a little as she started to drift in and out of consciousness. She hadn't slept this good in months, maybe even years. Ever since Henry had been born, and Will had left them, she'd been pulling double duty at both home and work and she was way past exhaustion. She loved her son, but her lack of sleep was starting to show, and more than one person on the team had professed their concern. It had gotten so bad that, even though she was disgusted by herself for feeling this, she almost felt relieved when the team had an overnight case because it meant that she could at least get a few hours solid sleep, even if that sleep was plagued with nightmares from current and previous cases.

Sighing contently, she let her eyes start to flutter open and slowly take in her surroundings. At first the appearance of the chocolate walls, dark cherry furniture, and the presence of a very attractive FBI agent who's arm was loosely, but somewhat firmly wrapped around her middle came as no surprise. Although she'd never admit it to anyone, she'd often had dreams of waking up next to Aaron Hotchner. Something about his ability to be cool and level headed but still full of compassion and pure drive to protect others made her knees go weak. She'd always felt something for him, she'd even described him when asked to describe her perfect man at the last girls night with Emily and Pen, and the thought of being with him, his rough hands running up and down her body, sent shivers up her spine. God, if only life hadn't gotten in the way maybe she could've ended up with him, maybe be could've been Henry's father. _'Haha...yea right Jenny, you keep thinking that. What kind of man wants a woman who has a six month old baby who can't seem to stop crying because his tummy's upset all the time? Definitely not Aaron Hotchner. Besides, it's not like you're his tye or anything. Look at Hailey, all quiet and reserved, content with being a stay at home mom. Honey, that isn't you and you know it. You'd never survive if you had to stay at home all day and you love your job...sometimes a little too much...' Her subconscious mind said as it gave her it's opinion. _

She knew she should get up now, there would be time to dream about getting 'aquainted' with her boss later, now she need to get up and check on Henry..._'Henry! Oh God how long has it been since I've checked on him! Oh God!' _JJ thought as she shot up in the bed that was still being occupied by a sleeping Aaron Hotchner who mumbled a sweet but still sleep filled, "Baby, It's not time to get up yet. C'mon lay back down...." as the arm around her waisted squeezed her hips gently.

"Okay JJ you've gotta wake up. You don't live here, this is not your room, and this is most definitely your boss! C'mon now wake up!" JJ said frantically as she pinched her arm hoping to jolt herself awake, but her attempts were fruitless as she succeeded in doing nothing but causing herself a tiny bit of pain. _'Okay so if I'm not asleep then this is real...But it can't be! Where's Henry?!?! Oh God. Okay I remember calling mama from the plane about picking him up after we got back from the case in Mississippi....I remember driving through some fast food place for dinner, pulling up to the house, and then....and then....Oh God! I can't remember what I did with my son!! Oh God!'_

"Hotch!! Hotch!! Please wake up! Hotch!! Please!!" JJ said as she violently shoved him in the shoulder trying to wake him up, "Please Hotch!! Please, I need you" she frantically yelled as her voice began to crack and it was that frantic voice that woke him up. Her desperate plea for help caused him to quickly jump from his sleep filled state to one of total awareness and jerk his arm back towards his body.

"JJ? What are you doing here? What's wrong? And, not that I don't like it, but why are you wearing that?" Hotch asked as he pointed to her deep purple bra that she was currently wearing which just happened to be made almost completely of lace, making it extremely see through.

Looking down at herself she quickly pulled the now tangled up sheet to cover her as she realized that she also had on no underwear. "I....I... Look I have no idea what's happening, or what's happened..., but I can't find Henry! Oh God Hotch...I've lost my own baby! I'm a terrible mother! I wake up with nothing on but my bra and in bed with my boss who I've dreamed about waking up with for years, except now I've lost my baby....Please! Please help me look for him!" Tears threatened to fall as she gripped the sheet around her tightly.

"Okay don't panic. First we'll check the guest room. I put Jack's old crib in there for when Sean and his family visit so maybe you put him in there last night." Hotch said as he took control of the situation to find the missing baby. Surely he was asleep in the crib in the room next door. "Hey..uh..JJ could you turn around for a second?" He asked as he realized he now felt the soft fabric of his cotton sheet on his very bare thigh.

"Why?!" she asked frantically. They needed to be looking for her son!

"Because I think I may have a very good idea of what happened between us last night" Hotch said as he felt his boxers with his toes as he sat up a little bit in the bed.

"What is it?!?! Do you remember where Henry is? Oh God Hotch I can't believe I can't remember what I did with my son!" JJ started again frantically as she moved a little towards the edge of the bed intent on getting up only to be pulled back down on the bed by two firm hands on the sheet.

"JJ! Stop! Don't pull the sheet! If you do you'll get a full view of everything I have, alright. So just give me a second to..." Hotch said as he carefully leaned down towards the foot of the bed and began pulling his boxers back up his legs under the covers, "Okay now turn around" he instructed once his underwear was securely in place and waited until she did so before standing and locating a pair of jeans.

"Oh no...We didn't, did we? I mean I'm not wearing any underwear and you're not wearing any...." JJ started as she too began to redress under the sheet by pulling on a FBI t-shirt she found laying hastily tossed on the floor that covered her well past her thighs.

"I think it's a very real possiblity considering...."

"Considering what, Hotch?" JJ asked fearfully.

"That I just found not only your underwear, but an open condom packet next to them with the condom still in it..." He said drifiting off before being cut off completely by her cell phone.

"Jareau!" She answered hurriedly.

"JJ! What's wrong sweetie? I've been calling you all morning wondering when you were going to pick my grandson..." Sherri Jareau asked, concern etched in her voice.

"So Henry's still with you? Please say yes mama! Please tell me he's with you!"

"Of course he is honey. Don't you remember calling me when you all got in last night to let me know you'd be by to get him this morning?"

"Oh thank God! I was just so tired last night I must've done everything on autopilot. I thought I'd lost him!" JJ replied to her mother as she looked over at Hotch, now clad in a pair of old jeans but still shirtless, and mouthing 'He's at my mom's'. She smiled at the relieved look that crossed his face before turning back to her phone call.

"Sweetheart, you've got to start getting some sleep! This can't happen again! Next time we might not be so lucky!" Sherri Jareau chastised her daughter for her carelessness.

"I know! I know mama! I'm so sorry! I'm coming to get him right now...."

"No, baby girl. I want you to get some rest. Henry's fine here and I've got plenty of diapers and formula to last us until tomorrow morning. Besides I love taking my grandson to church with me on Sunday mornings. Why don't you pick him up around noon tomorrow?"

"Oh mama no, I don't want to keep you tied up like that. I'm leaving right now okay?" JJ said as she pulled up her dress pants and fastened them before dropping the sheet from her body. She was just about to grab her keys when her mother's voice stopped her.

"Jennifer Elizabeth! Now you listen to me! You need rest and this is the best way for you to get it. I know Henry's been fussing lately and now that, that scumbag has abandoned you and my sweet little Henry, you need all the rest you can get. Stay in bed today JJ. Do you understand? This is my one time offer...take it or leave it."

"Okay! Okay! I'll take it! Kiss him for me will you?"

"Of course. We'll see you tomorrow! Bye!"

"Bye mama" JJ said as she hung up the phone and turned to Hotch to find him pulling on a t-shirt that looked suspiciously like the one she was currently wearing. Was Aaron Hotchner really the FBI's biggest fan?

"Look...let me just finish getting dressed and I'll be gone okay? Henry's okay...he's at my mom's and I'm picking him up at lunch tomorrow." She said in a rush as she darted her eyes around the room looking for her shirt. "Have you seen my shirt? My keys? I'm sorry...I'll be gone in a few seconds..."

"JJ!" Hotch shouted to catch her attention as he moved to stand in front of her, "Relax, okay. We need to talk about this....Whatever happened between us last night..."

Locating her keys and shirt she snatched them off the floor as she made her way to the door to his bedroom, "Look...whatever happened...it's okay. Really. I've gotta go. Sorry!" she said regretfully as she quickly slid out the door and down the hall, narrowly escaping though the front door before he could follow her down the stairs. She pulled of of the driveway not caring that she'd forgotten her shoes and panties, barely making it to the stop sign at the end of his street before breaking out in tears while Aaron Hotchner sat sadly on his bed wondering what the hell had just happened.


	2. Support

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds or anything else you recognize.**

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed!! Here's the next part...Hope yall like it!**

**Chapter Two**

_Two Months Later...._

JJ sat on a bench with tears running down her cheeks as she ran her thumb absently over the blurry little photo in her left hand. When her period hadn't come after six weeks she had known why, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that she wasn't going to be getting her period again for probably another eight to ten months. _Congratulations Ms. Jareau! _The happy nurse had told her when she'd finally got the courage to go to the doctor and have confirmed what she already knew. She was pregnant. Again. And on top of everything it was her Unit Chief's baby. Shit. When did her life become such a damn soap opera?

Of course she'd thought herself lucky when her doctor had managed to fit her in during his half day office hours on Saturdays until she realized after she made the appointment that it was on the exact day of Jack Hotchner's birthday party_. 'Well a baby sibling would be one hell of a present for him wouldn't it?' _JJ thought sarcastically. She was going to have to get a grip if she was going to even be able to step foot in that backyard this afternoon or the five profilers in attendance were sure to figure out exactly what was going on. Maybe she could just skip the party and take Henry to the Smithsonian again or something. He really did love the different animals and the dinosaurs....'_No Jenny then they really will think something's up...' _her subconscious mind reasoned, '_They'll notice if you don't show up with Henry and stay for at least an hour...Maybe you can sneak out while they cut the cake...Ok, yea. Hailey will probably cause a huge deal about the cake and you can sneak off then. Good plan Jenny!' _

Wiping her tears she stood and fumbled with her bag until she managed to get it on her shoulder. Keys in hand she made her way towards her silver SUV when her phone rang. _"Emily" _lit up the screen and she thought about not answering it, but then for some reason she flipped it open and answered with a tentative "Hello". Maybe she just needed to talk to someone even if she didn't tell them what was going on just yet.

"What's wrong?" Emily asked immediately. This was not the happy, joyful JJ that she knew.

"Nothing, Em. I'm just really stressed out and I still haven't gotten Jack's gift yet and the party's this afternoon." She lied hoping her friend would believe her that stress was all that was going on with her.

"You sure? Listen why don't you and Henry meet me for lunch at the mall and we can grab a gift for Jack before we head over to the party." Emily suggested knowing there was more that was bothering her friend, but realizing that JJ would tell her in her own time. JJ was they type of person that if you pushed her she'd clam up completely and you'd get absolutely nothing for her.

"Oh I don't know Em...I mean I don't want to tie up the rest of your morning..." JJ answered as she climbed in the front seat of her car and started the engine.

"Don't worry about it Jayje. Listen how about we meet at that Italian place that's on the second floor in say half an hour?"

"Okay, thanks Em. I'm on my way to pick Henry up from my mom's and then we'll head over."

"No problem. Bye JJ."

"Bye" she answered in a small voice as she hung up the phone and started the small drive to her mother's house. This was going to be an extremely long day.

-----

"Hey Em?" JJ asked as she unbuckled Henry from his car seat while he clapped his hands excitedly at the music from the party.

"Yea JJ?"

"Could you take him with you and let me hit the bathroom? I'll meet you back there." JJ asked as she handed Henry over to her friend.

"Sure JJ. C'mon big guy, Aunt Emily is going to take you to play with Jack-Jack and Aunt Pen." Emily said playfully to the little chunk of a baby that she'd placed on her hip and grabbed the two presents in her other hand.

"Are you sure you've got it all? I can carry the presents if you need me too Em." JJ said as she watched her friend try and balance Henry and Jack's gifts.

"No, I've got it. Just hurry outside okay or Pen's going to kidnapp Henry. She's already informed me that she wanted to take him home with her tonight..."

"Oh no...the last time he went over there he came home with a Cal Tech t-shirt on and his hair in a fake Mohawk." JJ replied laughing a little at their friends antics. "It _was_ pretty cute though."

"I don't think there's anything about this little guy that isn't cute." Emily countered as she began making her way over towards the gate that lead to the already full swing birthday party while JJ made her way towards the house hurriedly as she felt her first wave of nausea for the day hit her. _Just one hour...That's how long you've gotta last..._Her subconscious reminded her as she made her way through the front door and down the hall to the downstairs bathroom.

----

"Henry!" Garcia squealed excitedly from where she was busily chatting with Derek by the swing set when she saw Emily and her favorite little baby walk through the gate.

"Hey Garcia!" Emily shouted as she sat down the presents on the gift table and started making her way over to her friends.

"Where's Jayje?" Penelope asked while Henry grabbed her finger in his little fist.

"She's in the bathroom, Pen. She was looking a little green earlier at lunch..."

"Who was?" Hotch asked as he and Jack came over to see Henry and Emily.

"JJ. I think she's coming down with something." Emily answered as she squatted down with Henry so Jack could play with him.

"Oh okay. Well can you guys watch Jack for a second? I just need to run upstairs and get my cell phone." Hotch asked hoping they wouldn't notice his real reason for going inside.

"Sure man" Morgan replied suspiciously.

"Thanks. I'll be right back." Hotch answered before turning and walking back to the house swiftly, trying not to break into a complete run before he made it to the doorway.

"What do think is going on with that?" Emily asked from where her position on the ground with Henry and Jack.

"Not sure baby girl, not sure." Garcia answered while Morgan just stood there starring back at the house, his profiler mind already spinning.

---

"Okay you're Jennifer Jareau. You put yourself through college, you bought your first car, your one of the best shots in the whole FBI...YOU CAN DO THIS." JJ said to herself as she looked in the mirror on the bathroom wall. "You are an adult who has been through harder things than this...you can do this."

"Ummm...Somebody's in here..."JJ said when someone knocked twice and then twisted the knob before entering the bathroom quickly and then shut the door again. "Hotch? What the?" she asked when she came face to face with the man she was trying to avoid and had pretty much avoided since that afternoon over a month before.

"JJ we need to talk." Hotch said sternly. He wasn't about to let her run away from him this time.

"No, no I'm okay, really. Just a little nausea, nothing to worry about. Let's go out to the party..." she said as she moved towards the door only to be stopped by him.

"Please JJ?" He asked and the sincerity in his eyes caused all her defenses to fold and the tears to fall. "Oh JJ, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you cry."

"You didn't." She answered truthfully as she angrily wiped her tears away.

"Then what's wrong?" He asked tentatively as he moved closer to her in the tiny bathroom as a form of comfort.

"Ugh...do you remember that morning a few weeks ago when we...." she replied vaguely as they moved farther into the tiny bathroom and away from the door.

"Of course. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it." He answered honestly as he let his hand brush up and down her arm, relived when she didn't pull away.

"Really?" She asked, her voice like a small child as she leaned her head back against the light blue wall behind her for support. When he nodded she continued, "Well I've been getting sick lately and I seem to cry at the drop of a hat...not to mention I'm late..."

"Late?" He asked genuinely confused, "For what...Oh. You didn't get your period?"

"No. So I went to the doctor this morning and..."She supplied as she pulled the sonogram photo out of the back pocket of her jeans and handed it to him.

"You're pregnant?" He asked in shock, this was definitely not what he'd been expecting when he'd come looking for her. "And I'm..."

"The father? Yea."

"Oh. Wow." He said in a rare moment of complete shock as he sat down on the toilet lid. "Are you going to keep it?" He asked, his stomach in nots at the thought of her even considering having an abortion.

"Of course! But if you don't want to be there I understand, Hotch. I mean I know we've all had a lot going on lately. Maybe I could move in with my mom again....She's all alone in that house since my dad died anyways..."

"Move in with me" He said strongly, the shock starting to wear off. "I want you to move in here, you and Henry."


	3. Memories

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds or anything you recognize.**

**A/N: This story is literally writing itself so far so that makes me happy...as do all of the lovely reviews I've gotten so far for this story! Thank you all so so so much!! ALSO BE ADVISED that there are some MATURE themes in this one. **

**Chapter Three**

As soon as the words left his mouth memories of that night hit her like a ton of bricks. Every kiss, every moan, every gentle touch, and all three repeat performances, each better than the last. "You've said that to me before...." she gasped, "I remember...."

Startled at her sudden change of subject it took him a minute to catch up, "You remember? You remember that night?"

"Yes" she said as she noticed for the first time since they'd been in the bathroom just how good he looked in those jeans and that thin grey t-shirt. "That night after the case you asked me over for coffee, said you wanted to talk to me about something important...so I went to my mom's and kissed Henry good night and then came over...and then, then you said that you knew it had been hard on me since Will left and that you had plenty of room here since your divorce and that you wanted us to come stay with you for a while and then..."

"And then what JJ?" He asked still hopelessly trying to piece together the information she was giving him.

"And then this" she answered seductively as she pulled his head down to hers and roughly kissed him. And that was when the memories came back for him. They way her toes curled when he nipped the spot just behind her ear, the way they had each battled for dominance both wanting to be in control, the way she'd dug her fingernails in his back when he hit just the right spot....He was brought out his thoughts when he felt her pull away some, but before she could completely end the kiss he began returning it with equal passion as he backed her up against the wall.

When he finally pulled away due to lack of oxygen, and both of them panting he gave her a small smirk when he took in her flushed cheeks and swollen lips. He felt her fingers loop through his as the dizziness faded and he placed his forehead against hers, whispering a soft "Hey."

"Hey" she gave back with a small smile of her own and with one last chaste kiss she whispered, "We'd better get back out there or they're going to come looking."

"I don't care" He said stubbornly, "You never answered me."

"I thought that kiss was self explanatory, not to mention all _three _times that night..."

He groaned a little at the memory of that night they'd spent together, "I need you to say it, sweetheart."

"Yes" she said quietly as she looked him directly in the eyes, "Yes, we'll move in with you. Me, you, Henry, Jack, and the baby. Our family."

"Our family." he said in awe of just how much the woman in front of him allowed him to let go of the pain from his past and see the hope in his future, and of her ability to see him as both Aaron Hotchner the man and Aaron Hotchner the FBI agent. Something Hailey had never been able to, or maybe never even tried to do. "When's your next appointment?" he asked as he let his free hand come to rest on top of where their child rested.

"In a month at the end of my first trimester" she answered as she placed her hand lovingly on top of his. "I want you to come with me."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world" He told her, eyes sparkling, "When should we tell the team?"

"Not today" she offered and continued at his almost hurt look, "Today is Jack's day. I don't want to cause a scene with Hailey or the team on his birthday. Let him have his birthday and we'll announce it to everyone next week."

"Thank you for thinking like that" He said smiling, "Okay, you go out first and I'll meet you in a few minutes..."

"Why?" she asked but when his hips shifted against hers she had to bite back a moan at what she felt. "Later" she whisper as she pulled away and left the bathroom and headed back to the party so he could calm himself down before joining her.

-----

"That's it!" Hailey screeched when Aaron hadn't come back outside after around ten minutes or so, "I'm going to find him!"

"Hailey...." her sister Michelle started as she attempted to calm her angry sister down. Again.

"NO Michelle! This is his son's birthday damn it! He deserves his daddy to be here, not in the house working on some damn case!" she said in a huff as she stomped her way towards the house.

"Uh oh" Emily said once she noticed Hailey making her way towards the house, "Someone's angry..."

"And dramatic..." Morgan agreed. "I don't know how Hotch put up with her for so long..."

"Me either" Garcia chimed in, "You think maybe we should intercept her or something?"

"Nah, I'm not getting in her way" Morgan replied, "Oh shit! This is not the right time for JJ to be coming out of the back door..."

Seeing the fury on Hailey's face JJ knew she had to do something to calm her down, she and Aaron couldn't risk her finding him in the bathroom, not yet. "Hailey! I was just coming to find you!" she said smiling the smile she normally reserved for press conferences and overly anxious media personnel.

This seemed to startle the angry woman causing her to stop and look and JJ, "What? Why?"

"Hotch told me to tell you that he's just finishing wrapping Jack's gift and he'll be out in a minute" JJ replied smoothly as she watched the woman in front of her deflate.

"Really?"

"Really" JJ said as she guided the woman back over to where her sister was standing, "Thank you for inviting Henry and I today, Hailey. I know he's still little, but he just loves Jack." JJ knew she was laying it on thick, but she had to get Hailey focused on something else.

"Thank you both for coming, JJ. Jack's always talking about Henry and how he loves showing him his trucks" Hailey replied, smiling politely.

"Oh Henry's favorite toys are his trucks!" JJ gave back, allowing herself a small real smile, "I've gotta go check on him right now, but I hope we can talk sometime later okay? It was nice to see you again too Michelle."

"Okay. Listen JJ I'm sorry about before..." Hailey started, worried about her earlier actions.

"Oh that. Don't worry about it." JJ said brushing it off, "I'll see you both later." Seeing both women nod, JJ turned and started to make her way back over to her friends as Hotch made his way out of the house and over to team as well.

------

"Well will you look at that?" Morgan said as he watched Hailey literally turn to putty in JJ's hands, "Somebody's good."

"Real good. Did you see her practically lead Hailey back over to her sister like they were best friends or something?" Garcia said in awe. They all knew of Hailey's wrath when it came to Hotch and the BAU and none of them ever wanted to be between Hailey and whoever her target was when she got angry.

"Somebody's been paying attention during cases....she just practically profiled Hailey." Emily replied as she stood up with Henry while Jack ran off to play with his other friends.

"Hey guys!" JJ said smiling brightly as she reached them, "Where's Reid and Rossi?"

"Well somebody's feeling better..." Emily prodded as Hotch walked up and joined the conversation.

"Yea I think maybe it was just the last bit of that cold I had a few weeks ago or something" JJ answered, "So were are Reid and Dave again?"

"South Carolina" Hotch answered startling everyone slightly, "They're doing a custodial interview with Peter Nichols."

"The Charleston Butcher? I thought that was next week." Morgan pondered aloud.

"Nope they left yesterday after work" Hotch answered, "They'll be back on Monday."

Morgan was about to say something else when Jack ran over screaming "Daddy! Daddy! Mommy says it's time for cake!" causing the team to laugh.

"Hey Jack what kind of cake is it?" JJ asked as she held his hand while they walked over towards the food table where everyone was gathering.

"It's a secret." Jack whispered, but she could tell he was itching to tell her.

"Can you whisper it in my ear?" JJ asked nicely as the others made their way past them to where everyone else was. When Jack nodded she squatted down so he could reach her ear.

"It's strawberry!" he squealed cutely and giggled when she scooped him up and tickled him as she carried him over to blow out his candles, not missing that they were being watched by probably the most gorgeous man she'd ever laid eyes on. She just hoped he didn't break her heart, she didn't know if she could take it.

-------

After most of the guests had cleared out, Jack and Henry had very sweetly fallen asleep together on a blanket in the backyard while the team helped Hotch, Hailey, and Michelle clean everything up.

"Well I think I can get the rest guys, Hailey" Hotch informed them as they piled the last of the plates and cups in the black garbadge bag.

"Okay. What time are you picking Jack up to take him to the museum tomorrow?" Hailey asked, still in a good mood since talking to JJ.

"Is around ten okay?"

"Yea that's fine. I'll have him ready" she said as she gathered Jack's backpack and a few presents while Michelle scooped him up from the blanket where he was sleeping. "See you tomorrow."

"Yea we'd better be going too" Morgan said and Emily and Garica nodded their agreement as well while JJ went over to a stirring Henry to try and soothe him back to sleep to finish out his nap.

"Okay thanks for coming today guys. It means alot." Hotch replied as he walked the three of them to the wooden gate that enclosed the backyard.

"No problem Hotch" Morgan replied as he and Garcia climbed into his truck and Emily into her own car before they drove away into the sunset leaving Hotch, JJ, and Henry alone.

Walking back to the backyard he heard soft singing and the sight of her softly rocking Henry back and forth while sweetly singing to him warmed his heart. This was the woman he was having a child with and the thought of their baby growing inside her made his heart swell even more.

"Why don't you go put him down in Jack's room?" He suggested quietly when he finally reached the mother and son pair.

"Thanks" JJ smiled and made her way into the house followed closely by Hotch who carried Henry's blanket and diaper bag.

After putting Henry down in Jack's toddler bed with pillows all around him, JJ made her way back down stairs to find Hotch laying on the couch watching TV. Smiling softly he shifted a little so she could lay down as well, and they too soon fell asleep, with his hand protectively around her stomach, for the rest of the afternoon.


	4. Interrupted

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**A/N: So how about a very, very big THANK YOU to every single person who reviewed last chapter! I'm so glad everyone is liking this story. :) **

**Chapter Four**

It was well past eight when anyone in the Hotchner household drifted back into consciousness. As his eyes fluttered open, the first thing his eyes saw was the beautiful face of the woman next to him. At some point in the past few hours she'd shifted to face him on the sofa and now she was so close that to kiss her he'd only have to lean forward mere inches. As his eyes traveled further down her tiny body he noticed that her shirt had ridden up some time during their nap, and he could now see from her belly button all the way up to the bottom edges of that very same bra she'd been wearing the last time they'd woken up together, and the sight of it made his hands ache to touch it. He must have let out a growl as well because a soft giggle now reached his ears.

"Like what you see?" JJ said confidently as she watched him look her up and down.

"Baby you have no idea..." He whispered as he finally let his hands drift down and touch the soft skin that was now visible to him.

"Then show me..." she whispered back huskily as he skillfully moved her beneath him on the over stuffed sofa, "Gladly..."

But before things could get too out of control between them a knock sounded at the door. "Hotch! It's Morgan...open up man!"

Resisting the urge to growl in frustration he sighed and got up off the couch before helping her up. Quickly she made her way up the stairs to check on Henry while Hotch opened the door to find a very impatient Derek Morgan on the other side.

"Morgan, what are you doing here so late?" Hotch asked as he closed the door behind Derek and led him into the living room.

"Prentiss bailed on me so I thought I'd stop by and see if you wanted to grab a quick drink or something" Derek answered smoothly as he sat down in one of the over sized leather chairs. He was actually meeting the rest of the team later, but Garcia had gotten it in his head that something was going on between JJ and their boss and now he just had to see for himself. Her SUV had still been in the driveway when he pulled up and there was no reason she and Henry would be over at Hotch's this late other than them being together was there?

For possibly the first time in his life Aaron Hotchner was at a loss for words. He knew JJ wanted to wait to tell the team, but he didn't want to lie to Derek either. Thankfully JJ and Henry came down the stairs before he had to answer his friend. "Hey Morgan. What are you doing here so late? Is there something going on with a case we should know about?" JJ asked innocently as she cuddled a still sleepy Henry close to her chest.

"Ugh...no. I just stopped by to see if Hotch wanted to join me for a drink or something...."

"Oh well don't look at me. He's a grown up, he can go if he wants" JJ answered nonchalantly as if it really didn't matter to her either way. Not to mention she wanted to see what his answer was going to be, and if Derek was going to be brave enough to question her presence at their boss's house.

A surprised chuckle escaped Morgan's lips as Hotch shifted restlessly on his feet before answering, "I actually think I'm going to call it a night tonight, Derek. Sorry."

"Hey no worries man. JJ do you want me to walk you out?" Derek asked ready to gage her response. Little did he know that she had been pulling the wool over the team's eyes for years on random occasions, and she was completely ready do dodge his question.

"Actually, Hotch offered to let us stay the night here due to the fact that I need to discuss somethings with him about some new cases, but thanks for the offer" she answered seemingly cool as cucumber.

"Okay baby girl. Well I guess I'll just be winging it tonight...unless Garcia wants to do something" Morgan answered as he stood up, followed by Hotch, and started making his way towards the door.

"Oh I don't know Derek, she told me something about a hot date tonight..." JJ mentioned, catching on to the reason he'd come over and deciding to get back at him.

"Really? Wow. She never said anything to me. Oh well, just means I'm without a wing man tonight...not a problem. Anyways I'll see you guys later. Night." Derek said as he hastily made his way back to his truck, his mind going a mile a minute at this new information. JJ and Hotch? Garcia has a mystery date? What was going on?

Back inside the house Hotch was literally cracking up inside as he locked the door, and followed JJ into the kitchen. He'd caught on to JJ's game fairly quickly and had to laugh at the state Morgan had left in...never knowing he was being played. "You know he was just coming over to find the dirt out on us, right?"

"Of course" she said, her own smile threatening to show. "I caught on as soon as he told you that Emily bailed on him. She and Garcia already asked my opinion on what they should wear tonight...."

"Did they now..." he said softly as he kissed the top of her head before taking Henry from her so she could open up some of his baby food. "As appetizing as those blended carrots and turkey look I'm afraid I'll have to pass. How do you and the baby feel about Chinese for dinner?"

"Oooh I could seriously go for some Kung Pow chicken right now...and some strawberry ice cream...with peanut butter...yum..." she said, smiling dreamily at the thought. She usually disliked strawberry anything, but that cake earlier had hit the spot, and surprisingly enough the baby had let mommy keep it down which meant it got a double thumbs up.

"I think I can handle that" Hotch said as he placed Henry in Jack's old high chair that was still out so Jack could be high enough to reach the table when they ate at it. "Why don't you feed Henry while I go pick everything up?"

"Okay, but hurry...I can't promise this baby won't change her mind before you get back..." JJ said as she used the airplane trick to feed Henry, who was now fully awake and giggling, a mouthful of carrots.

"Her? What makes you so sure it's a her?" he asked as he grabbed his wallet and keys.

Laughing at Henry as he playfully spit out the peas she'd just fed him she answered, "Well don't get me wrong, I'll be happy with anything, but there's just something about this time that makes me feel like it's a girl..."

"A girl would be nice...I mean we do already have two boys..." he thought aloud as he propped his hip against the island.

"Yea" she agreed and then laughed at her own stomach growling, "Now go get that chinese! Mommy and Baby are starving!"

"Okay, Okay!" He surrendered playfully, "I'm gone!"

"Don't forget the rice!" she yelled after his retreating figure and then laughed openly when he answered with a "Yes dear!" before leaving.

Turning to Henry who was sweetly munching on another bite of mashed carrots, "So what do you think Little Man? Can you see us living here?" He grunted in response, which she took as a yes, "Yea. Ironically me too."

-----

"So you're telling me that you saw them together?" Penelope asked her chocolate Adonis as she sipped her first Margarita of the night.

"I swear, Angel" He answered truthfully as they waited on Emily to meet them at their usual table.

"Was there kissing? Touching? All of the above?" Garcia questioned and was met with a negative answer. "Then why do you think something's going on?"

"Penelope how many cases are we working on right now?" Derek asked as he waved Emily over.

"Umm...none. I mean Reid and Rossi are on that custodial, but JJ said its been a pretty slow the past few weeks in her office...no new cases. Why?"

"Because when I asked her if she wanted me to walk her and Henry to her car she told me that they were staying the night so she and Hotch could look over some new cases..."

"So?...OH! I get it now...if we don't have any cases right now then why would she need to discuss them with Hotch...Ooooh...Looks like someone's shacking up with the boss man." Garcia squealed as Emily sat down across from them.

"Who's shacking up with who?"

"Oh just Hotch and JJ...." Garcia said, already planning out the pair's future in her mind.

"What?!? Tell me what you know" Emily said, her interest spiked as she ordered her first drink of the night. Garcia filled her in, of course, sparing no details, and they spent the rest of the night trying to come up with a plan to catch JJ and their boss red handed.


	5. Dehydration

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds or anything else you recognize. :(**

**A/N: Okay so sorry this isn't the best of the best. My family, God bless them, just left this afternoon to head back to Alabama and they've left me a little crazy. But instead of cleaning my apartment up after they left I decided to write another chapter for this story. haha. Oh well, I guess I can clean later. :) Anyways THANK YOU THANK YOU to all of you who reviewed last time and I hope everyone likes this one...even if it is shorter than the others. Anyways Please Review if you like it and as always, thanks for reading. :)**

**Chapter Five**

Hours later it was the feel of the cold sheets next to him that woke him up, and then the sound of someone vomiting repeatedly that brought him somewhat out of his foggy sleep filled mind. Slowly and still somewhat sleepily he made his way to the bathroom where he found JJ sitting on the floor with her head miserably flopped over the toilet.

Sitting down behind her and placing a leg on either side of her still tiny body, his hands drift over the muscles in her shoulders and then her lower back, his fingers softly kneading the sore areas. "Sweetheart, how long have you been throwing up?" he asked calmly, not wanting to worry her if there is no reason for her to be upset.

"Not long, less than ten minutes I think. Henry woke up so I went and laid down with him for a while in Jack's room until he fell asleep, and then on my way back to bed I felt it coming on", she replies, her voice hoarse due to the fact that her throat is now extremely sore. "I think it's over now..." she adds and then flushes the toilet.

As he holds her waist so she can brush her teeth, her legs being fairly weak, he lets his mind spin as it contemplates what's happening. "JJ...I think we might need to go to the ER..."

"I know Aaron..." It's the lack of fight, even just the tiniest amount, that makes him really think somethings wrong. Not to mention the use of his first name. "This is the third time since lunch that I've thrown up..."

"Okay, don't worry sweetheart, I'm sure every thing's alright. I'll call the neighbor next door to come over and watch Henry while we're gone. She usually watches Jack for me when we get called in while he staying the night with me" he informs her softly as he helps her lay back down on the bed so he can get dressed again, silently glad that her ready bag had been in her car allowing her to wear her own pajamas, keeping her from having to redress in her jeans now. He can feel her eyes on him the whole time he's getting dressed and calling Mrs. Mitchell next door, but at least that means she's awake and not in danger of passing out. How much sleep had she really missed out on since Will left? Why didn't he notice it was getting this bad?

As soon as Mrs. Mitchell arrives and is informed that it's Henry that she's watching for the night, they're off to the hospital, both silently hoping that it's nothing more than fatigue and loss of sleep catching up with her and not something more serious as her hands tightly grips his as it rests on the console between them.

----

It's late, well past midnight, and he's left to pace the almost empty waiting room of Georgetown Medical Center's ER, waiting desperately for some news, any news on JJ and the baby. The nurses had whisked her away over an hour ago, leaving him to wait in the waiting room, and even though he knows she wanted to wait to tell the team, he had to talk to someone so he's called the one person he's always been able to count on since his first week at Quantico over ten years ago.

"Hotch!" a familiar voice shouts and his worry filled mind recognizes it as the person he's been waiting on standing right in front of him.

"Dave..." he whispers as his calm, cool facade starts to crumble. "They won't tell me anything..."

"Why not?" Dave asks his friend, his anger at the hospital staff growing.

"Some bull shit about us not being married or engaged..." Hotch answered, his use of a curse word showing how broken he actually was as he waited for any news on JJ and the baby, "That's my child inside her Dave...I deserve to know what's going on..."

"Damn right you do!" Dave nearly shouted, clearly ready to attack the next doctor that made his way into the waiting room for information.

"Excuse me? Aren't you the one here for Jennifer Jareau?" an older doctor asked polietly as she wiped her hands on her pink scrubs. The lines around her eyes betrayed the her age, a part of herself that she'd so obviously tried to cover up.

Startled at the woman in front of him, his words coming out a jumbled, "I'm sorry?"

"Jennifer Jareau? You brought her in, right?" she asks again as she looks at the admittance papers for his signature, "Aaron Hotchner?"

"Yes, that's me. I'm sorry it's been a long night, ma'am." Hotch starts apologetically, his immediate anger at the hospital staff depreciating, "What can you tell us about her condition?"

"Well, as far as we can tell the only thing wrong with her is severe dehydration due to excessive loss of sleep and liquids for a prolonged period of time. She informed me of what happened with her former fiance and her current pregnancy so I've prescribed some prenatal vitamins and an over the counter B6 vitamin that should help control the nausea. We've admitted her for the next twelve hours for observation as a precaution, but as long as she's careful I don't think there should be any lasting side affects. Mainly she just needs to make sure she drinks plenty of liquids, eats healthy, and gets quite a bit of rest. Agent Jareau also explained to me that the work your unit does you have to travel frequently, correct?"

"Yes ma'am. We usually travel two or three times a month for cases. Will she need to stay out of the field?"

"For the most part, yes. She can still travel with you for the time being, but I'd like to recommend her not doing a lot of excessive running, jumping, and so on that could make her blood pressure rise significantly. It would be better for the baby if she could stay at whatever base operations you've set up, at least until after her first trimester. I've also set up an appointment with her OBGYN here in the hosptial for Tuesday morning as a follow up. Will that be a problem?"

"No it won't, thank you doctor. May we see her?" Hotch asks, his calm facade back in place.

"Of course. We've moved her to room 822, which is on the eighth floor. Just tell the nurses at the desk who your there to see." She informs them smiling tiredly before leaving the two dark haired men in the waiting room to attend to another patient.

Relief rushes through him as he takes to heart the doctors words that as long as she takes care of herself she and the baby will be completely fine. He's so caught up in the fact that every thing's okay that he barely register's his friend guiding him towards the elevators.

"Go, Hotch. You need to see her. Call me later if you want the others to come by, okay?" Dave prods gently as his friend walks into the elevator car.

"Yea, okay." He mumbles as the doors begin to close and then adding, "Thanks Dave" before they shut completely.

-----

"Aww did your wife just have a baby?" a short, but cheery nurse who's name tag boldly reads DENISE in all caps asks him as he wearily walks up to the nurses station on the eighth floor. His own fatigue catching up to him.

"Not yet" he answers shortly, completely not in the mood for a conversation with Denise, but his attitude does little to deter her, and her persistent conversation causing him to not even notice that he's just referred to JJ as his wife. "I'm looking for room 822?"

"Oh that's Jenny's room right?! I just love her. She's been such a riot while she's been up here" Denise gushes as he follows her down the hallway to JJ's room, "Well just let me know if you two need anything and the day nurse will be in to check on you in about two hours when her shift starts."

"Thank You" he say in a voice that's normally reserved for Section Chief Strauss, one that's just a little too forceful, and enters JJ's room before the over bearing Denise can follow him. Some people just don't know when to leave you alone...

Lowering himself into the somewhat comfortable chair by her hospital bed, which can be folded into a small cot, and allows his hand rest in hers as he watches her sleep, and it isn't long until he feels sleep over take him, his other hand on her stomach and his head resting on the bed.


	6. Fear

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds or the Jungle Book.**

**A/N: Sorry, I know I told some people this would be up yesterday, but I got a little side tracked. Anyways here's the next update...hope you like it! And thanks again to everyone who reviewed the last chapter!**

Chapter Six

What is it about the dark of night that leaves so many frightened or filled with a sort of cautious enthusiasm at what lies beneath the surface? What causes children to automatically be afraid of the dark and the sounds that go bump in the night? Could it be as simple as the fact that people are the most afraid when they are the most vulnerable? Is that why most children almost always refuse to go to sleep at night? And why can our minds produce the most horrific things we've ever known, changing and twisting the truth in a dream that is sure to leave us fighting to wake up? And why is it that the children that seem to have the worst dreams, the worst fantasies, even the ones that sometimes bleed over into the waking hours, are the ones who teeter on the edge of darkenss, with most free falling into it, but some, a rare few, drift towards the light? What is the difference between two siblings that makes one a killer and one a police officer? One a rapist and one a lawyer? Why do some the become monsters and some grow up to fight them?

It was no secret that each memeber of the Behavioral Anaylsis Unit had their own brand of horrors from the past that would be more than happy to haunt their dreams if the current cases couldn't. Each member of the team being one of the few that chose the light over the almost overwhelming darkness that had invaded their lives. Each dealing with slowly healing wounds that could quickly turn even the most pure of heart to become one of the people they worked to catch every day, and Jennifer Jareau was not exempt, her own heart almost scarred beyond recognition beneath the surface.

For a young athletic blond girl from Pennsylvania life, to the outside world, seemed perfect. A fireman father, a school teacher mother, and a charming baby sister complete with a house out of the Stepford Wives catalog. But every family has it's secrets that are kept hidden from the world around it like the neglectful father, the adulterous mother, and the sticky fingered baby sister who only stayed out of jail because of family connections. The mask JJ wore each time she addressed the press was one that had been carefully molded over the years of pretending that everything was fine, but the nagging feeling in her gut that she was all alone in the world never seemed to fully go away. Will LaMontagne was just another example that people always leave, but it was the one time she'd hoped she'd been wrong about someone. If only for Henry.

Ever since she was fifteen, she'd hated hospitals. Starting from the day she broke her arm during soccer practice and was rushed to the county hospital, her own mother failing to even show up at the ER except to pick her up, claiming once again that she'd been held up grading papers or something else that was so obviously a lie. Just how many papers did a person have to grade for first graders? Seriously.

So when her eyes had opened and she'd found herself in yet another hospital room, alone and scared, she panicked. Wire after wire, probe after probe, and even the IV in her hand suddenly made her feel like a lab rat ready for testing. Everything had to come off, even as the nurses rushed in when she removed her blood pressure monitor, the machine wailing in the tiny room, she couldn't stop her flight response to the situation. Even the threat of being sedated hadn't done the job of getting her calm and back in bed, and towards the end the doctors and nurses stopped fighting her all together. If this woman wanted to leave they couldn't stop her.

"JJ! What are you doing?" a deep voice said as it broke the tense silence that her room had fallen into. A soft and sweet "Mama" followed as little hands were clapped, rooting her feet to the floor beside her bed.

"But...I...I thought you left? I...I woke up and you were gone..." she whispered as the doctors and nurses quickly filed out of the room giving them the space they needed.

"I went to go pick up Henry from Mrs. Mitchell" Hotch gave back softly as he moved a little closer to her, "Why would you think I abandoned you?"

"Because everyone always does...Everyone always leaves..." she answered as she sat on the edge of the bed, her eyes filling with tears, "You're the first person who's ever come back, Aaron. Ever."

"JJ..." he let out, face softening, "The only way you're going to get rid of me will be if you want me gone. I'm not going anywhere, sweetheart..."

"Promise?" she said weakly, hopefully.

"Promise" he answered as he laid a soft kiss on her forehead while Henry played happily in his arms, "C'mon get the rest of your things, lets go home."

"Home?"

"Yes home, and you, the boys, and I are going to spend the day at home...as a family." he told her softly, a rare smile threatening to show, "I'll even let you help me make the pancakes if you promise not to burn them..."

"Hey! That was one time! It's not my fault that the timer was broken." she said as she smiled a little and wiped her tears, "That hotel had it in for me, I swear!"

"Whatever you say, JJ." he said as she gathered the last bit of her things from the room. Now was not the time to talk to her about whatever this was that had just happened, but at some point they were going to have to deal with it, and he was going to have to get her to understand that he was never going to abandon her. He wasn't like all the rest, and he was going to prove it to her, even if it killed him.

-----

Two hours later and all seriousness forgotten, abandoned breakfast trays littered the floor of the bedroom with bits of banana pancake still clinging too them. Jack had quickly proved himself the cuddler of the group as he snuggled into JJ's side, content to stay there as they watched the Jungle Book, all cuddled into the over sized bed in the master bedroom. Henry was still clinging to Hotch and he sweetly covered his eyes by snuggling into Hotch's chest when "the scwary lion", as Jack called him, came on the screen.

"What's wrong Jack-Jack?" JJ asked when she noticed Jack's eyes closed tightly.

"I don't like the scwary lion!" he said fearfully as she rubbed his back soothingly.

"Me either" JJ whispered, "I think we should hide! Quick, under the covers!"

"What about daddy and Henrwy? Can they hide with us?" Jack whispered to her once they were safely hidden under the covers.

"Of course, but be careful that the lion doesn't see you!" JJ warned as he stuck his little head above the covers to whisper to Hotch.

"pssh...JJ." Jack said as his head appeared under the covers again, "The lion's gone! And daddy wants to know if you're feeling better? Do you need me to kiss your ouchie like mommy does when I get a ouchie?"

"No sweetie, thank you, but it's not that kind of ouchie." JJ said as they both reappeared on top of the covers again to find Henry sleeping and Hotch leaning back against the head rest with his eyes closed, "Sometimes my tummy just gets upset. But you can tell daddy that I am feeling better." She smiled as she watched him lean over and whisper exactly what she'd told him in Hotch's ear and then as Hotch whispered back to him.

"Daddy says to ask you if you want him to invite Uncle Dave and the team over tonight. Pwease JJ. I never get to see Uncle Dave..."Jack said pouting in the only way a Hotchner could and JJ found her self wondering if her baby would have that same adorable pout.

"Okay, but only if you promise to take a nap first..."

"I pwromise!"he agreed as both he and Henry were scooped up by Hotch and carried to the appropriate places while JJ began carrying the dirty trays down the stairs.

"Hey Aaron?" JJ said, liking the way his first name easily rolled off her tongue and she fully intended on only calling him Hotch at work. He was Aaron at home and Hotch at work, just like she was Agent Jareau at work and JJ at home. When he turned towards her in the hallway she smiled shyly before saying, "Thanks for not leaving me today."


	7. Team

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**A/N: SO SO sorry this has taken so long! I've been busy with finals, holiday stuff, and a thousand other things. But never fear...here's the next chapter! Thanks to everyone, and I mean everyone who reviewed the last one. :) And, as always, Please let me know if you liked this one too. P.S. I know this isn't the best, and I'll try to have the next, and better, chapter up this weekend if at all possible. Thanks for reading! I'm sorry if Hotch seems a little OOC...he just wouldn't cooperate tonight.**

**Chapter Seven**

**"Team"**

Aaron Hotchner was nervous. He knew these people were his friends, and that he was fairly certain he loved the woman next to him, but that did nothing to quell the fact that his hands were practically shaking inside his pockets as he and JJ stood in front of the team, the others waiting anxiously to be told the reason they had all been asked to come together at such short notice. Jack and Henry were now over at Mrs. Mitchell's making cookies after playing with the team for a few minutes because as much as he often disliked his ex-wife, it wasn't fair to have her find out about his new relationship, and JJ's pregnancy from their son. JJ had also been adamant that they tell Hailey as a team, which was something that he also agreed with, but now with the faces of his five closest friends staring up at him, he was literally wishing JJ would take control of the conversation.

"So we've asked you here tonight for a reason" Hotch started, trying hard to keep his voice even, "JJ and I have something we'd like to tell you."

Smiling at his uncharacteristic nervousness JJ took over, "You're officially the only one's we've shared this with, and please don't mention it in front of Jack and Henry because we'd like to tell Hailey before we tell the boys."

"Jayje, what's going on?" Garcia asked, her mind whizzing at the fact that JJ had just refered to Jack and Henry as "The Boys", almost as if they were brothers.

"I'm pregnant, and yes before you all ask Hotch is the father." JJ said, deciding that the straight forward approach was best, "I know this comes as a bit of a shock, and it was for us too..."

"Wait, hold the phone! Are you telling me that you're pregnant and Hotch here is the father?" Morgan asked, disbelief and shock evident on his face.

"That's exactly what we're saying." Hotch answered, his nervousness subsiding, "And we've decided to keep on seeing each other and just see where the relationship takes us."

"Seriously?" Reid squeaked. "You know the statistical probability that..."

"Reid!" JJ yelled, cutting him off, "We're extremely serious. We plan to tell Strauss first thing Monday morning."

"That's a pretty bold thing, going to Strauss so early in the relationship..." Rossi prodded, breaking his previous silence. He knew Aaron Hotchner better than he knew himself, and he could tell his friend was in this for the long haul, especially after what happened with Hailey, and he just hoped JJ felt the same, and from what he could see she did. "But I'm happy for you, Hotch. Both of you. Congratulations."

"Me too" Garcia added decisively, pinching Morgan's leg to break him out of his silent stare, "And so is he."

"What? Oh yea. Of course we're all happy for you. It's just that this is...I don't know...sudden." Morgan added as he ran his hand over his face. "I support you both, but I'm just shocked. I just thought that maybe you guys were dating, I had no idea that you were pregnant again JJ."

"Honestly, I didn't know for certain until the day of Jack's party. I'm sorry we didn't tell you then, but we didn't want to ruin the day for Jack. I wasn't even planning on tell Aaron until _next _weekend, but he sort of figured it out." JJ added as she filled in some of the dots for the team. They didn't need to know every detail about what happened that caused Hotch to find out about the baby, but she thought they did need to know that it wasn't something they had been keeping from them.

"Well I guess congratulations then." Emily said happily as she hugged her friends. She really was happy for them, but she was also sad that she still didn't have a family of her own. She'd always wanted to be a mother, ever since she was little, but the timing always seemed to be off. Truth be told she envied her blonde friend a little, but she was also happy for her.

"I'm happy for you too, JJ. Hotch." Reid added quietly as he hugged his best friend on the team and his boss. "Really."

"Thank you Spence." JJ said sincerely. "And I know we promised you guys dinner, but the baby didn't like the idea of me cooking so we made us all reservations at La Bella Faire in thirty minutes...I hope that's okay."

"That's perfect, Jayje" Garcia said smiling widely, "Now tell us all the good details...like am I going to have a new niece or nephew?"

Laughing JJ answered, "I'm just over two months along Pen, I don't find out what it is for another month."

"Oh please don't say that" Morgan groaned, "She dragged me to every baby shop in all of DC before Henry was born. I don't know if I'll survive that again..."

* * *

"I think that went over well" JJ said as she curled under the comforter while Hotch got ready for bed. "They seemed genuinely excited for us."

"I think you're right" he answered as he slipped on a pair of flannel pajama bottoms, "I just didn't expect them to be as shocked as they were. I thought Morgan would've figured it out after he showed up here last night."

"Me too" she said truthfully, shifting so he could lay down next to her. "Something seemed off with Emily tonight though."

"I noticed that. She seemed to be lost in her thoughts all during dinner. Maybe you should talk to her tomorrow."

"Yea, maybe I will." JJ said with a look of determination, but not before a yawn slipped out. "But I'm exhausted right now..."

"Then sleep, sweetheart. The boys are fine and I'm not going anywhere. We can talk about this tomorrow morning" he promised as he flipped off the lamp, plunging the room into darkness, but waited until he heard her soft, even, sleep filled breathing before adding quietly, "I think I'm falling in love with you JJ, and it scares me..."


	8. Overwhelm

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**A/N: THANK YOU so much to who ever it was that nominated this story for the 2008 CM awards! You make me smile! :) Oh, and as always, please review!**

**Chapter Eight**

**_"Overwhelm"_**

"Hey Em, can I talk to you for a second?" JJ asked from her office door way when she saw her brunette team mate exit the elevator early Monday morning. "It won't take long, I promise."

"Um..yea sure, Jayje." Emily said, trying her best not to groan out loud. She knew exactly what JJ wanted to talk about, had noticed something in her eyes the night before, but she had hoped she was just seeing things. Apparently she was wrong. "What's up JJ?" Emily asked as they entered the Media Liaison's small office and shut the door. "Everything okay?"

"That's what I want to know, Em. Is everything okay with _you?" _

"What do you mean? Everything is fine." Emily answered, hoping to appear sincere. She really did not want to discuss the part of her past that all this baby news was bringing up again. That was a time in her life that she wanted to close off the memories from--permanently.

"Yea and that's why you were downing red wine when we all went to dinner like it was your lifeline. I'm not blind Emily, and the team isn't either. Who would you rather talk to about what ever this is--me, Morgan, or whoever else feels the need to ask you about it? We all know Dave isn't shy about asking people questions he thinks need to be asked--remember how he was during Pen's shooting."

"_Please __not today_,JJ. This is something I thought was behind me, but turns out its not completely gone. I really just don't want to talk about this right now, but if I do I'll come find you. Okay?" Emily was almost begging, something completely out of her normal character, but if that's what it took to keep her blonde friend from questioning her more then so be it.

"Okay" JJ sighed, "But don't think I won't hesitate to call in Garcia if I think this is getting out of hand."

"I understand. Thanks JJ." Emily said as she gathered her bags and stood to leave the office for her own desk. "I'll see you at the briefing."

* * *

"Good morning everyone" JJ greeted in what sounded to the outsider like a cheerful tone, but her team picked up on the falseness of it immediately, "Section Chief Strauss will be accompanying us on this case."

Unspoken apologies were understood from both JJ and Hotch to the entire team as the monstrous Section Chief entered the room and took a seat in between Reid and Garcia at the conference table. "Agent Jareau, let's get started."

"Yes Ma'am" JJ answered tightly, this was going to be an extremely hard case on the team, and Strauss invading their ranks wasn't going to help matters. "Over the past two months the Norfolk police department has discovered six female victims. All were blonde, either dyed or natural, all under 25, and all had recently given birth. Each victim was also a single parent, except the third victim--Anna Leigh Haynes. She was married to Detective John Haynes, Norfolk PD."

Pausing to take a deep breath, and to let the team digest some of the information she had just given them, JJ took a second before pulling up the DMV photos of all six victims. "Victim number one, Catherine Martin, was found in the Virginia Zoological Park just over two months ago. Witnesses place her there the day before with her brother, Army Sgt. Daniel Martin, who just returned from Iraq two weeks before his sister's death. The body was found by a night time security guard who found her in one of the women's restroom stalls around two am. The coroner discovered that she had been raped and subsequently drowned in the toilet bowl, and "The Magician" tarot card was found on the ground next to the body."

"The Magician card can represent a master maniuplator" Reid tossed out, "Someone who likes to control things, but may not exactly care for the well fare of others while he exerts his control."

"Reid, that sounds like every UnSub on every case we have" Morgan sighed, the fact that this UnSub was targeting single new mothers was already beginning to wear on him.

"Each victim was found in the same way as Catherine Martin, including the appearance of the tarot card at every scene. The only thing that differs is the places the bodies were found. Victim number two, Ariella Hunt, was found by her nursing professor just after lunch in a first floor bathroom at Tidewater Community College. Victim number three, Anna Leigh Haynes, was discovered by her neighbor in her own bathroom while the husband was away working an extra shift on the job. Victim four, Melissa Roberts, was found in the public restrooms of the Chrysler Museum of Art. Victim five, Christine Casey, was found in the public bathroom of a well known eatery in the downtown area called Mitzy's. And the last victim, Cheryl Todd, was found in the Federal Courthouse employee restroom. She worked there on the staff of District Judge Matthew Pinehurst."

"So he's definitely stalking them, he has to be. Otherwise he wouldn't be able to know when they were alone in the bathroom" Emily mused, "Had any of the victims reported being stalked in any way in the past year?"

"Not according to NPD's Lt. Sam Marsden who sent me the original request for our assistance", JJ answered as she took her seat next to Hotch. "He did tell me that Detective Haynes, victim number three's husband, said that his wife felt like someone was watching her at the grocery store the day before, but he just told her she was paranoid and locked up the house before he left for work."

"Talk about a guilt trip, poor guy" Morgan added, "And she was the only one to tell anyone that she felt like she was being watched JJ?"

"As far as the police know, they're still canvassing for witnesses on the latest victim--Cheryl Todd. She probably thought she was safe in a Federal Courthouse..." JJ answered, her comment trailing off with her mind becoming quickly lost in thought.

Noticing her behavior, Hotch quickly diverted everyone's attention, "Car leaves in thirty minutes. Don't be late."

* * *

"Everything okay?" Hotch asked as he stopped by JJ's office to find her wiping her eyes, which were beginning to turn red and puffy--she'd obviously been crying.

"Oh, ummm yea. I'll be fine. It's just these women they look...." she sputtered, shuffling around like a teenager trying to hide her cigarettes from a prying parent.

"Like you" He added softly, already knowing that would be one of the things that was bothering her, "but there's something else."

"Aaron, please stop profiling me." she pleaded, "I'm just upset because I fit the victimology for yet another case, not to mention I'm pregnant just like these women were just weeks before they were killed. I think I deserve the right to be freaking out a little."

"I'm sorry, JJ. You're right, it's just sometimes I don't even realize I'm doing it, and sometimes I can't turn it off." he admitted, "But unlike these women, the father of your baby _is _around, and he's going to be there with you to protect you every step of the way. I won't let anyone get near you, either of you, I promise."


	9. Unforgettable

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**A/N: Sorry this is short and that it's taken me forever to update! Midterms are nearly here—not that that's an excuse—but they're taking up my time like nobody's business. **

**Chapter Nine**

"_**Unforgettable" **_

"_CHRIS! Stay with me!" Emily screamed as she applied pressure to his shoulder wound, the ambulance sirens finally reaching her ears. "No! C'mon stay awake baby, please don't leave me Please don't leave us."_

"_Ma'am you need to step back, we need to take a look at him and you." A female paramedic informed, placing a comforting hand on Emily's bloody arm—glass shards from the windshield still imbedded in it. "Ma'am please, at least let us check you out and make sure your baby is okay."_

"_Okay" Emily whispered, backing away from her battered fiancée and watching as two medics started assessing his wounds—their totaled car smoldering off in the distance. _

"_Can you tell me your name?" The female medic—Angie—asked again as she helped Emily sit down on the back of the ambulance._

"_Emily. My name is Emily Elizabeth Prentiss."_

"_Very good. It's nice to meet you Emily Prentiss." The medic smiled, "Can you tell me how far along you are?"_

"_A week shy of five months." Emily answered quietly, "We were on our way home from the doctor's appointment, we just found out it's a girl."_

"_Congratulations." The medic smiled again, "Picked out any names yet?"_

"_We're thinking about Melissa" Emily answered, nearly falling forward as a sudden sharp pain shot through her abdomen, "OWW!"_

"_What? Tell me where it hurts." The medic commanded, noticing the blood staining Emily's crotch—a sure sign the baby was in distress._

"_My…My side…"Emily gasped, "Oh God, the baby!"_

"No!" Emily screamed, shooting up in the bed—covered in sweat. "No, please not again."

It took her a few seconds to realize that the door adjoining her room to Morgan's was busted open and he was sitting on the bed next to her. "Morgan what the--?"

"You were screaming so loud I'm surprised nobody else heard you." Morgan answered, "I've been trying to wake you up for the past five minutes—well at least I tried to wake you up after I broke down the door thinking you were being attacked and found you having a nightmare."

"I'm sorry I woke you up." Emily apologized, climbing out of the bed intent on taking a shower. "Thanks for coming to my rescue though—even if you can't fight off the nightmares."

"Em you know you can always talk to me, right?" Derek asked, concern coating his handsome face.

"I know. Thanks Derek."

* * *

"So why hasn't the UnSub killed another victim? We've been here almost two weeks and he's yet to do anything. "Rossi questioned, taking a bite of his lunch. It wasn't that he wanted another person to die, it was only that this killer seemed to be all over the map which made it near impossible to narrow down a decent profile. "The last two victims were killed less than three days apart—a sure sign that he's devolving—but now nothing, there should be more victims Hotch."

"I know." Hotch said sadly, his eyes drifting to catch a glimpse of the woman who was carrying his child as she answered another call on her blackberry. "We're missing something Dave."

"This guy is a sadistic psychopath that's devolving rapidly, the only way he could keep himself from taking another victim would be if he was either being forced to stop in some way or if he's waiting for something." Morgan spoke up as he finished off his soda.

"Not to mention Strauss offending every officer in this precinct on a daily basis isn't doing us any favors, the only reason they haven't asked us to leave is because of JJ." Emily pointed out, glad that the Section Chief had taken the morning off to have a teleconference with Quantico. She didn't need the added stress of being watched like a hawk today, not after the nightmares.

"Reid, any luck on narrowing down a geographical profile?" Hotch asked, eager to solve this case and head home—something about this whole case made him uneasy, though he'd never show it.

"The closest I can get is within a thirty five mile radius, he's all over the place and without more victims I can't narrow it down any further." Reid answered, starting to continue until JJ burst into the conference room.

"We may have a lead. A woman just called in and said she found Catherine Martin's wallet in her son's bedroom. Apparently when she went to change the sheets it fell out from under the mattress." JJ informed quickly, "She said he's been out of town for the last week with his job so she thought it would be nice if she cleaned his apartment for him while he was gone."

"Did she find anything else concerning the other victims?" Rossi answered, tossing Morgan the keys to the SUV.

"No, she stopped cleaning up when she found Catherine Martin's ID" JJ answered, "I told her not to touch anything else until you guys got there."

"Good. Reid stay here with JJ, and if Strauss comes back fill her in on what's going on." Hotch mandated, he wasn't about to leave JJ alone when she fit the victimology perfectly. "What's the address?"

"415 Charleston Ave., Virginia Beach."

"Morgan, Prentiss, Dave with me." Hotch commanded, sliding on his Kevlar and kissing JJ quickly before making his way to the SUV followed by his three team mates—all of them missing the way a certain Judge's clerk took a special interest in JJ as Reid placed a call to Garcia.


	10. Brothers

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**A/N: I know I told some of you that something might happen to JJ in this one, but I hit a road block--or a writer's block--when I tried to write that part, so I decided to write it like this. Hope it's okay. There should only be like three more chapters in this story, but don't worry, we'll definitely be meeting baby JJ/Hotch soon. :)**

"_**Brothers"**_

"Ma'am you need to wait outside" Emily informed, motioning for a female uniformed police officer to escort the woman outside the small apartment while they searched for any other items belonging to the victims.

"Mom?" A young businessman—Justin Samples—asked as he approached his apartment, "What's going on? Why are the FBI in my apartment?"

"Justin" Mrs. Samples sobbed, "I'm so sorry. I came over to clean a little and I found…I found the wallet of one of the dead girls we've been seeing on the news when I went to change the sheets in your room."

"Mom, Peter's been staying in there—not me." Justin informed, "He's been staying with me for the last three months since his landlord kicked him out."

"Who's Peter?" Hotch asked, purposely over hearing the conversation.

"My brother." Justin said sadly, "He was in the Army until two years ago, and when he came back he was _different, _almost like I didn't know him anymore."

"What do you mean?" Rossi asked, already knowing the probable answer in his mind.

"At first he couldn't hold down a job, got kicked out of where ever he was staying every other week." Justin supplied, his mother off being comforted by a female police officer, "He was almost like a hollow shell, except when he was angry, but that was the only emotion he ever showed. Then three months ago he changes back, so I let him stay with me—it was like he was back to the way he used to be, and I was so happy to have my brother back, I didn't question it."

"That's right around the time the murders started" Emily pointed out sadly. She wanted to catch the UnSub, just like she always did, but this was the part she hated—the part where the people left behind have to come to terms with not only what happened, but what they could have done to stop it.

"Where's your brother right now?" Morgan asked hurriedly, there was a chance they could stop him before he killed anyone else.

"He works at the Federal Courthouse for Judge Pinehearst. Matt and I went to college together so I got him the job when he moved in here."

"That's the same judge the last victim worked for. " Morgan stated angrily, but he knew it wasn't the first time an UnSub had managed to look clean on a background check—even if that check was done by Penelope Garcia herself.

"I've got Matt's personal cell. I'll call him." Justin offered, pulling out his cell phone and having a brief conversation with someone before hanging up.

"Well?"

"Matt says Pete left to deliver a warrant to Norfolk PD earlier in the day, it was to a Lieutenant Sam Marsden. Does that help you any?" Justin asked hopefully.

"That's the point guy for this case, Hotch." Rossi informed sharply, "We need to get back to the precinct."

* * *

"Hey Spence do you have change for a five?" JJ asked, the craving for chocolate suddenly becoming overwhelming, "The baby really wants some M&M's."

"Did you know chocolate cause the body to release serotonin which gives us a euphoria type feeling?" Reid asked excitedly.

"Hey, I don't mean to intrude, but I couldn't help but over hear your conversation." A young man—Peter Samples—spoke as he held up two packs of plain M&M's. "The machine gave me two packs so you're welcome to one if you want it."

"Are you sure? I don't want to take it if you were planning on eating it."

"No, I'm positive. There's no way I could eat both of these." Peter smiled, alarmingly overly normal—something that Reid noticed immediately as he watched the man's behavior. "Peter Samples, I work for Judge Pinehearst down at the Federal Courthouse."

"Jennifer Jareau, FBI." JJ informed, catching on to who this man was—the UnSub—as she noticed Morgan, Emily, Dave, and Hotch practically run back through the precinct doors. "You're under arrest."

"For giving you M&M's? You've got to be kidding me?!" Peter asked incredulously, eyes darting around nervously as Hotch and Morgan approached to take him into custody.

"Don't even think about moving Samples" Morgan said coldly, watching as Reid and JJ moved towards the other side of the precinct to safety. "You're under arrest for the rape and murder of six women here in the Norfolk area."

"You sure it's only six?" The UnSub asked, finally dropping the nice guy façade, "The Army might disagree."

"Get him out of here." Rossi ordered angrily.

* * *

"I just got off the phone with Army CID. Peter Samples was the main suspect in a rape and murder case of two female Privates, but the case fell through when the evidence was tampered with." Hotch informed the team as they stood in the bullpen, all glad that this case was finally over.

"We got him this time, we need to focus on that." Rossi informed wisely. "He won't be getting out of anything this time."

"Let's head home, we all need a break after a case like this. The paperwork will be here in the morning." Hotch commanded, taking JJ's hand as they made their way out of the bullpen.

"I'll see you guys later." Emily added, grabbing her ready bag and making her way towards the elevators as well.

"Hey Prentiss!" Morgan called, catching up to her as she passed JJ's office. "Wait up!"

"What's up Morgan?"

"I was thinking of trying this new Chinese place that just opened up by my apartment." Morgan informed, stepping onto the empty elevator car with Emily, "Wanna join me?"

"I think I'm just going to head home tonight. Sorry." Emily answered, "Maybe you can catch Garcia?"

"Yeah, maybe." Morgan offered, silently adding, _Something's going on with you Emily Prentiss, why won't you talk to me?_


	11. Leah

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds.**

**A/N: So I know this is short, and not really all that great…but it's the best I've got for this story—sorry. Anyways, this is the end and it's told from JJ's POV. **

**Chapter 11**

"_**Leah"**_

In life there are always things that you remember more than others, things that happen that you never thought were possible. One day you're engaged to a man you aren't sure you even like and then a few months later you're in the delivery room giving birth to someone else's baby—someone who ironically turned out to be your boss.

Of course he's there, holding your hand and trying his best to help you do those stupid breathing exercises that the crazy hippie teacher at the Lamaze classes tried to teach you in whole three sessions you made it to.

"I can see the head!" you hear the doctor announce and you can't help but feel relieved, you've been pushing for what feels like forever and if this baby doesn't make her appearance soon you just might die of exhaustion. Well, at least you were smart enough to ask for the epidural this time.

Finally after three more God forsaken pushes you hear the sound you've been waiting for, the sound that makes it all worth it as a squalling baby is placed on your chest.

"Hey there, Leah" You whisper tearfully, and maybe it's just your imagination, but the she seems to calm some at your words, "I'm your mama."

Seconds' later small, stocky nurse scoops up your new daughter to clean her up and when she does so you chance a glance at the quiet man standing next to you. There are unshead tears in his eyes, and when your eyes connect with his you know for certain what you've known since the day you told him you were pregnant—there will never be another person more perfect for you than Aaron Hotchner.

By the time they take you back to your room, your sweet baby girl is nestled in her father's arms and she's sleeping contently. You hear him whisper "thank you" to you, but you shake your heard knowing that it's you who should be thanking him—so you say the one thing that seems to come to mind, "I love you". And he smiles widely and replies those exact same words to you.

Half an hour later you find yourself surrounded by the team, the people who form a sort of make-shift family that you consider yourself honored to be a part of. Your son and Jack are both in the room sporting "I'm a big brother" t-shirts and sitting with you on the bed while the others take turns holding your new baby girl.

"Have you guys picked out a name?" Emily asks, and you can see her trying to keep a brave face. For a while you thought she hated you, until she came and confided in you on how she lost her baby and her fiancée in a horrible car accident. That was the day you realized that Emily Prentiss is the strongest person you know.

"Why don't you tell them" You whisper to the man next to you, "You picked it out."

"Her name is Leah, Leah Grace Hotchner" he informs proudly and you see Morgan slip a hand into Emily's and it makes you smile because if there's one person on the team, other than you, that Emily would confide in its Morgan.

"And we want you to be her Godmother Em" You say, still smiling tiredly, "but of course that means you'll have to play nice with Dave since we want him to be her Godfather."

Emily accepts her new role, and so does Dave, and after the congratulations are over you soon find yourself struggling to keep your eyes open. Garcia is the first to notice and she and Spence whisk the boys off to a night filled with video games and movies while the others quietly follow them out the door.

As soon as the last person is out the door and you see that Leah is safe in her father's arms your eyes close and you fall into a blissful sleep and allow yourself to dream of your life that turned out more perfect than you could have ever wished for.


End file.
